Here’s why I bring this up: The world’s richest man is paying a 23% premium to purchase/increase his stake in a European telecom, the worst performing sector in a badly performing market, in a hazardous region. Hmmm.

That makes me feel better about my exposure to Europe through DWX. For months I’ve been writing that Europe is imploding, the euro is a dead currency walking, but many of the companies are going to come out of this crisis as survivors, perhaps even stronger for having endured this environment and come out the other end. Telecom, healthcare, food, etc. all have companies that represent global franchises and brands. They are still vulnerable and stepping in is for long term investing only, but that’s what we do. We step in when others are selling. That’s the hard trade. That’s the contrarian trade here. It doesn’t mean rushing foolishly into sovereigns and taking on the political risk. It doesn’t mean buying only one firm. For me it means stepping in small and diversified, ready to reallocate or go bigger. Regardless of how you play it, Europe is starting to expose some long term value opportunities for the few who can buy in times of uncertainty and panic. Carlos Slim has made his fortune stepping in and buying where others won’t. He’s just doing what he always does, and I’m happy to be on his side of the trade.